Page 37 of Lucifer's Mirror

“Will someone tell me what’s going on?” I say again and turn the full force of my glare on Khaosti. “And by someone, I mean you. Why did his eyes change like that?”

For a few seconds, I think he’s not going to answer. Then he shrugs. “He’s a shifter. It’s a side effect of being bitten by the shadowguard.”

“You mean he’ll be like you? He’ll be able to change into a wolf?”

That doesn’t seem too bad. It’s sort of cool, in fact. But there’s something not quite right. Because Zayne’s eyes did not look like they belonged to a wolf.

I cast a glance at Zayne to see how he’s taking this, but he looks resigned more than anything. I’m guessing this is not news to him. It’s presumably what Khaosti told him last night. But he’s also watching Khaosti, waiting for the answer, so I’m guessing he doesn’t know enough yet.

“No, not a wolf,” Khaosti says.

“Then what?”

“He’s a basilisk.”

Chapter 18

Grumpy and Grumpier

Zayneseemsbacktonormal—whatever that means—in the morning. At least his eyes have reverted to their usual silver gray.

“Stop fucking staring at me,” he growls.

We’re tacking up the horses, getting ready to leave, when Stella jumps and whinnies, clearly not impressed by my preoccupation with Zayne’s bad mood.

“Sorry,” I mutter. I’m not sure who to, Zayne or Stella. Probably both.

I’m struggling to get my blanket to fit back into the saddlebag. It came out of there yesterday, but for some reason, it seems to have swelled overnight. Zayne comes over, snatches it out of my hands, folds it up, and stuffs it into the bag.

“Thanks.” I feel responsible for everything that’s going on with him. I want to reassure him, but how? I’m not even sure what a basilisk is, and Khaosti had refused to say anything more last night. If I remember rightly, it’s a sort of cross between a lizard—which would account for the scary lizard-eyes—and… no idea.

I hate that he won’t look at me. I fumble with the straps, fastening the bag onto the saddle, and when I look up, I notice he’s really close. I turn to face him, slip my hands around his waist, and hold him tight. I don’t let go until the tension seeps out of him, and he squeezes me back. “It will be all right,” I say into his chest.

“Yeah,” he mumbles back, but at least he’s talking to me.

“I mean, how bad can it be?” Then I remember those scary lizard eyes.

“Pretty fucking bad.” But I can hear a smile in his voice, and some of the tension leaves me. We will get through this. Whatever “this” is. “Apparently, they’re pretty badass,” he says after a moment. “They have wings.”

“Basilisks?” I ask.

“Yeah. Maybe I’ll be able to fly. That might make up for a lot of shit.”

He’s obviously been thinking about it, and he clearly knows more than me. I want to talk some more and find out everything he knows, but at that moment, Khaosti approaches, leading his horse. “It’s time to go,” he says, his tone sharp.

I stay where I am for a few seconds, breathing in Zayne’s familiar scent. Except, it’s not so familiar. It’s changing. I sniff. “You smell different.” Sort of spicy and hot with an undertone of… sulfur. Maybe it’s a basilisk thing.

“Now,” Khaosti snaps. Zayne isn’t the only grumpy one this morning.

I sigh, then pull away and turn back to Stella. I tighten the girth, then look back at the camp to make sure I haven’t left anything behind. But it’s all clear, as though we hadn’t even been there. Only the ashes of the fire remain.

I pull myself up into the saddle, give Stella a rub on her glossy shoulder, and we’re ready to go. We take the same formation as yesterday, with Khaosti in the front as he’s the only one who knows the way, then me, with Zayne bringing up the rear.

At first, the countryside is the same as yesterday: rolling grasslands, with nothing of any interest to see except for the odd tree. But after a couple of hours of riding, we see the first sign that people might actually exist in this world—a house with smoke coming out of the chimney. It’s a stone-built cottage, with a lean-to shed at the side and a fenced paddock at the back, though there are no animals in there right now. I swivel in my seat as we pass, hoping to see an actual person. But maybe they’re shy.

After that, we see more houses and eventually a real live person. They run for cover as soon as they spot us. I don’t know whether it’s us they don’t like or whether it’s strangers in general.

Around noon, I spot something flying high above us, but it’s too far away to see clearly and soon disappears over the horizon.